My Sestina, Autumnal Winds
By Bob Potts
Autumnal winds beat the windswept coast
Behind a rocky outcrop is a lone scavenger
With his newly collected wares he waits out the storm
The sand is swept into the sea as waves pound the beach relentlessly
The scavenger begins to lose hope
It pours down in torrents, the scavenger cannot see his own hands in this rain
The shallow potholes along the rocky shore fill with rain
As the sand is pulled away we lose more of the coast
But the light sweeps around and in the scavenger's heart is a glimmer of hope
This storm can be waited out, thought the scavenger
He moves toward the light, fighting against the winds relentlessly
This was only a storm
The winds blew harder as the scavenger realized, This isn't just a storm
Stinging his face was what it took for the scavenger to recognize the power of rain
The rain soaked him to the bone, falling relentlessly
He watched the sand drift away, forever changing his coast
If nothing else, I cherish these shores, I, a scavenger,
The man thought as he built up his glimmer of hope
As the light shined through the storm it represented the light of hope,
A chance to live, A chance to survive this storm
This hope will be enough for me to survive, said the scavenger,
to no one in particular, as no one could hear on this night of rain
A night to be forever remembered on this windswept coast
A night when the wind blew relentlessly
A night when the rain drowned relentlessly
A night more than worthy of taking all hope,
but alas, this man would survive to once again walk on this coast
He would survive this night filled with what we call "Storm",
This storm of wind and rain
That's what would be said of this scavenger
Can he really still be called a scavenger,
after this he's fought relentlessly?
Can it really be easier without the rain,
would that be a ray of hope?
Could that represent the end of this storm,
the end of the battering of this coast?
Is this a storm worthy of hope,
A term used only when fighting relentlessly?
Of course, never has a storm such battered this coast.